Provo, UT

When my friend Felicia came to visit, I couldn’t wait to take her to my favorite restaurant in Utah. In fact, we headed to Thaifoon, at the Gateway in Salt Lake City, straight from the airport! The food is always delish, the atmosphere manages to be relaxing, elegant, and hip all at the same time, and I knew without a doubt that the ambience and menu would impress any New Yorker.

As usual, Thaifoon did not disappoint. I was surprised, though, at how crowded it was for 9 p.m. on a Thursday night. I’ve been there plenty of times during the week and had never seen it quite so crowded. It turned out there was a convention in town, and apparently word gets around! I was a little concerned that we wouldn’t get a table—they said it would be a 45 minute wait and they close at 10 pm—but we ended up only waiting about five minutes before we were led to a cozy booth.

As always, the food was phenomenal (and so was the service). Felicia and I shared our appetizers and entree so we could try more dishes. We started with the Shrimp and Avocado Tempura Rolls and the Crispy Coconut Shrimp, then shared the Evil Jungle Princess Tofu (panang curry for traditional Thai-aholics). What can I say, besides yum?

Now I can’t take all of the credit for discovering Thaifoon. Even though I ate there with my husband when we first moved to Utah, my friend Jen is the one who got me hooked, and she makes sure it’s a fairly regular ritual. She’s the best date you could ask for, too—she’s always willing to share, and she never skips dessert. Typically when I go with Jen we share the Shrimp and Avocado Tempura Rolls (seriously, to die for, if you go you HAVE to try them) and we both order Tom Kha Gai, Thaifoon’s signature soup. Jen likes the Siamese Spring Rolls, while I favor the Chicken Satay. You can make a meal of the Chicken Satay appetizer if you pair it with the creamy and delish Wasabi Mashed Potatoes, which is what I did on my birthday. Yep, Thaifoon was my birthday restaurant of choice; I went with my husband and daughter, who is a super fussy eater, and she was perfectly happy with the kids’ Bento Box.

The other fun part about Thaifoon is that it’s right in The Gateway so you can work up an appetite while you shop, shop, shop. That’s what Jen and I do (okay, sometimes we return stuff, too—after all, we have to pay for dinner). When Felicia came into town, it was just a little early to eat dinner, so we watched the fountains for a while, grabbed a coffee at Starbucks and chatted while we lounged in the cozy purple armchairs, and window-shopped down Rio Grande Drive. She said it reminded her of shopping on certain streets in New York, especially stores like Anthropologie, and for the first time it reminded me a little of when I used to live there, too.

I love that we have such a great outdoor shopping and dining experience here in Utah. Even nicer, you don’t HAVE to spend tons of money. You can just spend the day window shopping and enjoying the fountains and the atmosphere (although I highly recommend giving Thaifoon a try).

Thaifoon is located at 7 North, 400 West, Salt Lake City. (801) 456-8424

For a peak at the menu, click here.

Check The Gateway’s website for hours, parking, and directions.